She then selected the best bicoloured offspring to mate back to Siamese or Orientals in order to regain type.

During the 1980s, European breeders, principally those in France and the Netherlands, initiated their own Oriental bicolour breeding lines.

FIFe granted championship recognition in 2003 to the bicoloured Oriental Shorthairs and in 2005 to the colourpoint and white cats under the breed name Seychellois.

The coat on the short-haired variety is sleek, close-lying and glossy, while that of the long-haired is fine and silky, lying flat to the body with no thick undercoat and forming a plume on the tail.

The full range of colours seen in Siamese and Orientals is permitted, however a defining feature of breed is that they always have white spotting.

In a cat of show quality this should extend to cover at least one third of the body and the distribution may be random and quirky like splashed paint.